Land Pollution

AN OVERVIEW

Introduction
Land Pollution or Soil pollution is defined as the build-up in soils
of persistent toxic compounds, chemicals, salts, radioactive
materials, or disease causing agents, which have adverse effects
on plant growth and animal health.

Facts And Figures

1. Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development estimates that up
to 40 percent of municipal waste in India remains simply uncollected.
2. In March 2009, the issue of Uranium poisoning in Punjab came into
light, caused by fly ash ponds of thermal power stations, which reportedly
lead to severe birth defects in children in the Faridkot and Bhatinda districts
of Punjab.
3. 174 million hectares of land suffers from different types and varying
degrees of degradation.
4. 5000 million tonnes of top soil are eroded every year.
5. Dept. of LAND Resources estimates that 20% of the reported area is waste
land.

How can soil be polluted?

1. Seepage from a landfill
2. Discharge of industrial waste into the soil
3. Percolation of contaminated water into the soil
4. Rupture of underground storage tanks
5. Excess application of pesticides, herbicides or fertilizer
6. Solid waste seepage

Sources of Soil Pollution

Sources of Soil Pollution

1. Agricultural Soil Pollution
1. Pollution of surface soil
2. Pollution of underground soil

2. Soil pollution by industrial effluents and solid wastes

1. Pollution of surface soil
2. Disturbances in soil profile

3. Pollution due to urban activities

1. Pollution of surface soil
2. Pollution of underground soil

Sources of Soil Pollution

A soil pollutant is any factor which deteriorates the quality, texture
and mineral content of the soil or which disturbs the biological
balance of the organisms in the soil. Pollution in soil has adverse
effect on plant growth.
Pollution in soil is associated with
1. Indiscriminate use of fertilizers
2. Indiscriminate use of pesticides, insecticides and herbicides
3. Dumping of large quantities of solid waste
4. Deforestation and soil erosion

Indiscriminate use of
fertilizers
Plants obtain carbon, hydrogen and oxygen from air and water. But other
necessary nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium,
magnesium, sulfur and more must be obtained from the soil
Mixed fertilizers often contain ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3), phosphorus as
P2O5, and potassium as K2O, As, Pb and Cd present in traces in rock
phosphate mineral get transferred to super phosphate fertilizer. Since the
metals are not degradable, their accumulation in the soil above their toxic
levels due to excessive use of phosphate fertilizers, becomes an
indestructible poison for crops.

Indiscriminate use of
fertilizers
1. The over use of NPK fertilizers reduce quantity of vegetables and crops
grown on soil over the years.
2. It also reduces the protein content of wheat, maize, grams, etc., grown on
that soil. The carbohydrate quality of such crops also gets degraded.
3. Excess potassium content in soil decreases Vitamin C and carotene
content in vegetables and fruits.
4. The vegetables and fruits grown on over fertilized soil are more prone to
attacks by insects and disease.

Indiscriminate use of
pesticides, insecticides and
herbicides
Plants are under attack from insects, fungi, bacteria, viruses, rodents and other animals,
and must compete with weeds for nutrients.
To kill unwanted populations living in or on their crops, farmers use pesticides. The first
widespread insecticide use began at the end of World War II and included DDT
(dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) and gammaxene
Insects soon became resistant to DDT and as the chemical did not decompose readily, it
persisted in the environment. Since it was soluble in fat rather than water, it biomagnified up the
food chain and disrupted calcium metabolism in birds, causing eggshells to be thin and fragile.
RESULT:
large birds of prey such as the brown pelican, ospreys, falcons and eagles became endangered.
DDT has been now been banned in most western countries. Ironically many of them including
USA, still produce DDT for export to other developing nations whose needs outweigh the
problems caused by it.

Indiscriminate use of
pesticides, insecticides and
herbicides
1. The most important pesticides are DDT, BHC, chlorinated hydrocarbons,
organophosphates, aldrin, malathion, dieldrin, furodan, etc.
2. The remnants of such pesticides used on pests may get adsorbed by the
soil particles, which then contaminate root crops grown in that soil.
3. The consumption of such crops causes the pesticides remnants to enter
human biological systems, affecting them adversely.
Pesticides not only bring toxic effect on human and animals but also decrease
the fertility of the soil. Pesticide problems such as resistance, resurgence, and
heath effects have caused scientists to seek alternatives. Pheromones and
hormones to attract or repel insects and using natural enemies or sterilization
by radiation have been suggested.

Dumping of solid wastes

1. Solid waste includes garbage, domestic refuse and discarded
solid materials such as those from commercial, industrial and
agricultural operations.
2. Contain increasing amounts of paper, cardboards, plastics, glass,
old construction material, packaging material and toxic or
otherwise hazardous substances.
3. Solid Wastes such as oils, battery metals are hazardous.
1. In the long run, get deposited to the soils of the surrounding area and pollute them
by altering their chemical and biological properties.
2. Contaminate drinking water aquifer sources. More than 90% of hazardous waste is
produced by chemical, petroleum and metal-related industries and small businesses
such as dry cleaners and gas stations contribute as well.

Deforestation & Soil Erosion

1. Soil Erosion occurs when the weathered soil particles are dislodged and
carried away by wind or water.
2. Deforestation, agricultural development, temperature extremes,
precipitation including acid rain, and human activities contribute to this
erosion.
3. Humans speed up this process by construction, mining, cutting of timber,
over cropping and overgrazing. It results in floods and cause soil erosion.

Pollution Due to
Urbanization
1.

Pollution of surface soils

Urban activities generate large quantities of city wastes including several Biodegradable
materials (like vegetables, animal wastes, papers, wooden pieces, carcasses, plant
twigs, leaves, cloth wastes as well as sweepings) and many non-biodegradable materials
(such as plastic bags, plastic bottles, plastic wastes, glass bottles, glass pieces, stone /
cement pieces). On a rough estimate Indian cities are producing solid city wastes to the tune of
50,000 - 80,000 metric tons every day. If left uncollected and decomposed, they are a cause of
several problems such as
2. Clogging of drains: Causing serious drainage problems including the burst / leakage of
drainage lines leading to health problems.
3. Barrier to movement of water: Solid wastes have seriously damaged the normal
movement of water thus creating problem of inundation, damage to foundation of buildings as
well as public health hazards.
4. Foul smell: Generated by dumping the wastes at a place.
5. Increased microbial activities: Microbial decomposition of organic wastes generate large
quantities of methane besides many chemicals to pollute the soil and water flowing on its
surface

Pollution Due to
Urbanization
2. Pollution of Underground Soils
Underground soil in cities is likely to be polluted by
Chemicals released by industrial wastes and industrial wastes
Decomposed and partially decomposed materials of sanitary wastes
Many dangerous chemicals like cadmium, chromium, lead, arsenic, selenium
products are likely to be deposited in underground soil. Similarly underground
soil polluted by sanitary wastes generate many harmful chemicals. These can
damage the normal activities and ecological balance in the underground soil

Causes in brief
1. Polluted water discharged from factories

7. Over application of pesticides and fertilizers

2. Runoff from pollutants (paint, chemicals,

rotting organic material) leaching out of
landfill

8. Purposeful injection into groundwater as a

disposal method

3. Oil and petroleum leaks from vehicles

washed off the road by the rain into the
surrounding habitat
4. Chemical fertilizer runoff from farms and
crop
5. Acid rain (fumes from factories mixing
with rain)
6. Sewage discharged into rivers instead of
being treated properly

9. Interconnections between aquifers during

drilling (poor technique)
10. Septic tank seepage
11. Lagoon seepage
12. Sanitary/hazardous landfill seepage
13. Cemeteries
14. Scrap yards (waste oil and chemical
drainage)
15. Leaks from sanitary sewers

Effects of Soil Pollution

Agricultural
1. Reduced soil fertility
2. Reduced nitrogen fixation
3. Increased erodibility
4. Larger loss of soil and nutrients
5. Deposition of silt in tanks and reservoirs
6. Reduced crop yield
7. Imbalance in soil fauna and flora

Effects of Soil Pollution

Industrial

Urban

1. Dangerous chemicals
entering underground
water

1. Clogging of drains

2. Ecological imbalance

2. Inundation of areas
3. Public health problems

3. Release of pollutant gases

4. Pollution of drinking water

sources

4. Release of radioactive rays

causing health problems

5. Foul smell and release of

gases

5. Increased salinity

6. Waste management problems

6. Reduced vegetation

Effect of soil pollution in

brief
1. Pollution runs off into rivers and kills the fish, plants and other aquatic life
2. Crops and fodder grown on polluted soil may pass the pollutants on to the
consumers
3. Polluted soil may no longer grow crops and fodder
4. Soil structure is damaged (clay ionic structure impaired)
5. Corrosion of foundations and pipelines
6. Impairs soil stability
7. May release vapors and hydrocarbon into buildings and cellars
8. May create toxic dusts
9. May poison children playing in the area

Control of soil pollution

1. Reducing chemical fertilizer and pesticide use
2. Reusing of materials
3. Recycling and recovery of materials
4. Reforesting
5. Solid waste treatment

Legal Controls
1. Forest Conservation Act, 1980
2. Environmental Protection Act, 1986
3. Hazardous Micro-Organism Rules, 1989
4. The Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemicals Rules, 1989
5. The Chemical Accidents (Emergency Planning Preparedness and Response)
Rules, 1996
6. Bio-Medical Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules, 1998
7. Plastic Manufacture Sales and Usage Rules, 1999
8. The Municipal Solid Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000
9. Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules, 2001
10.Hazardous Wastes (Management, Handling and Transboundary Movements)
Rules, 2008

Natural land pollution

Land pollution occurs massively during earth quakes, land
slides, hurricanes and floods. All cause hard to clean mess,
which is expensive to clean , and may sometimes take years to
restore the affected area.
These kinds of natural disasters are not only a problem in that
they cause pollution but also because they leave many victims
homeless.

Management Problems
Integrated approach to planning and management
Land use change
Stakeholder participation and awareness
Green Initiatives
Combating land degradation and desertification
Strengthening knowledge base and developing information

Thank you